Can discharging and sorting mechanism



Feb, 13, 1951 M. JECUSCO CAN DISCHARGING AND SORTING MECHANISM FiledMarch 9 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet l DINVENTOR.. Mark dgcwm M Q a ATTORNEY IFeb. 13,- 1951 M, JECUSCO 2,541,537

CAN DISCHARGING AND SORTING MECHANISM Filed March 9, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet2 IN V EN TOR.

Mark Jecusco TTORNE'Y Patented Feb. 13, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT E1?ICE,

CAN DISCHARGING AND \SORT-ING MECHANISM 8 Claims; (Cl. 209"-82)1This-invention relates to mechanism for-making small one-piece metalcans or vials andparticularly to the means for forwarding normal cans'andrejecting defective or crushed Work.

The invention contemplates-theprovision of simple pneumatically operatedmeans cooperating with the press inwhich the cans are-formed forautomatically, ejecting damaged cans during the movement of'th'ecansto'the' conveyor-on which the cans-are degreased.

The various objects of the invention will be clear-- from" thedescription which follows and from'the'drawings, in which,

Fig." 1 is a largely diagrammatic front view' of a machine embodying theinvention.

Fig. 2"is-a side view partly in section, of part ofthe press and of thepneumatically operated guard'gate for automatically ejecting a damagedcamshowing indash-dot lineshow the gate opens to'permit a damaged can topass the gate and to by-pass the loading chute.

Fig. 3 is a similar View of the-guard gate and loading, chute showinghow normal cans'fail to open the-gate completely-and thereby arepositioned'to roll into and'dov/n thechute;

Fig; 4'is'a combined vertical sectionand front view'of the gatechamberandof-the-chute to which "it. leads.

5' isa'lon'gitudinal sectional viewof the tube leading'from the press,"showing how partof'theair blast passes a'normal ean and exerts acomparatively small force on thegate.

Fig. dis a similar viewof the same showing how the air.'blast is almostentirely obstructed by a damagedcan in the tube to exert a considerableforce on said can.

In general, my improved machine comprises a conduit or tube leading fromthe press and terminating inva chamber whichis providedwvith a hingedgate and which communicates with a chute. Air pressure in the tube andgravity move the can from the pressinto the chamber.

If the can isdamaged, the damaged can, under the higher. pressurethereon, strikes the gate with. sufiicient force to open the gate enoughto permit ejection ofthe damaged can therepast. Ifthe canis normal, thegate opens only slightly and-insufficiently, to permit the discharge ofthe normal can, which rolls into theohute.

Inthe practical embodiment of the invention shown by way of example, thepress iiiis of any suitable type, being provided with a series ofprogressive cooperating blanking and. drawing dies-of which the maledies as l l2, [3, M and iii, are shown, such dies and presses beingwell'known in" the art; A''- blank isdrawnprogressively-hr the-requirednumber of stages by the dies'into' the formof a can as Shaving oneclosed end" and'an open end, thework beinglubricated-in the usual mannerif desired.

The last operating male die i5 has an axial air passage It therethrough(Fig. 2), suppliedwith air under pressure by means of the' hose lli fromasource of compressedain A'suitable-valve suchas the welldznow-nSchrader valve maybeinterposed'in the air'supply'lineto the hose;

and may'be'operated in'anywell known manner to open at'the requiredtime,the valve an'd its operating means beingwell "understood and hence needno illustration. Byany suchmeans, a'blast of air is supplied to thepassage" is of the'die i5' onthe downstroke of the press.

A suitable L-shaped can guide andiorwarding tube'is arranged with itsvertical part ifiin eoaxialalignment with the die and in positionto'receive thereinto the 'air'blast from the die.

'Iheinner'diameter of" the tube issubstantiallygreater than the outerdiameter of'the-can which slides therethrough (Fig. 5.)

the downwardly moving die, starts the can moving along the vertical partit of the tuber Because ofthe relativediameters of thecan and. the tube;anormal can moves easily through the tube by-gravity largely. The exitor discharge end of the horizontal part Zfiofthe tube-com municates withthe chamber 2!; which is-preferably formed with a top wall 22; a'rearwall. 223

to which the tube part 253 is connected and'an optional side wall 2d:The front wall of the cham-- ber, however, is not fixed, but takestheform of the weighted. gate 25'hinge'd to'the'top wall 22 by means ofthe hinge 2%.

Normally, the gate25 is in-the"elosed' position movement of the gate isinsufficient to allow the can to move out of 'the chamber 2|. When theair blast'is out off on the upstroke of die it; the gate 25 closes ofits ownweight and moves the can back into the chamber as shown by thedotted lines of Fig. 3. The can then rolls down along, the inclinedbottomll of'thechamberon to the downwardly inclined chute '28"which isThe finished-can? havingjbeen' deposited-in the'entrance' end-"of thetube 58, the blast from th'e die it," aided-by- However; that part ofinterposed between the gate and the adjacent end of the tube part 20 andleads generally in a direction perpendicular to the tube. Said chute hasupstanding side Walls 29 thereon suitably cut away at their ends topermit the can to move into and out of the chute in a manner soon to bedescribed.

Should the can have been damaged by the press, as by crushing, itsover-all cross sectional area and shape is enlarged by the crushingaction of the dies which spreads the can laterally, so that instead offitting loosely in the tube l8, the damaged can 30 fits comparativelytightly therein as shown in Figs. 2 and 6. Consequently,

very little if any, of the blast from the die l can pass the damaged canto act upon the gate 25. The can therefore almost completely obstructsthe blast and receives the full force thereof so that said gate remainssubstantially closed during the greater part of the movement of thedamaged can in the tube. The blast is powerful enough to move the canrapidly through the tube and to cause the can to strike the gate ratherviolently. The impact of the damaged can upon the gate opens the gatesubstantially completely as shown by the dash-dot lines of Fig. 2. Thedamaged can is ejected past the gate, bypassing the chute entrance inthe chamber 2|. Processing of the damaged can in the remainder of themachine is thereby avoided. The orce required to open the gate enough topermit the ejection of a damaged can may be controlled by weighting thegate more or less as needed by means of suitable weights as 62. .Anormal can,

after being backed by the gate into the chamber,

described, it is intended that said embodiment be illustrative ratherthan limitative, because of possible variations within the spirit of theinvention.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described, a reciprocating memberhaving an air passage therethrough, a substantially L-shaped tube belowthe member and having a portion thereof arranged coaxially of the memberto receive a blast of air emerging from said passage, said air blastbeing partly obstructed by a normal article of work deposited in thetube and being substantially wholly obstructed by a damaged article ofwork inserted into the tube and damaged so as to increase the area ofthe projection thereof on a plane perpendicular to the axis of thearticle, a chamber at the lower end of the tube and communicatingtherewith, a hinged gate normally closing that side of the chamberopposite the tube, a downwardly inclined chute leading from the chamberand having the upper end thereof interposed between the tube and thegate, and weights on the gate to cause the gate normally to openinsufiiciently under the pressure of the partly obstructed blast in thetube to permit the passage past the gate of a normal article of work,said gate opening widely against the action of said weights under theforce exerted by the impact thereon of a damaged article of workadvanced along the tube by the blast.

2. In a machine of the character described, a

tube having a horizontal portion at one end thereof, means fordelivering cans and a blast of air into the other end of the tube, achamber closed at the top and on one side and communicating at one endwith said one end of the tube, a gate pivoted along the upper edgethereof at the other end of the chamber, and an inclined fixed chuteleading from the chamber, the upper end of the chute forming the fixedbottom of the chamber.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein the can and blast delivering meanscomprises a member having an air passage therethrough and reciprocatinginto and out of said one end of the tube.

4. The machine of claim 2, the chute extending substantiallyperpendicularly to the horizontal portion of the tube.

5. In a machine of the character described, means for advancing a canincluding a blast-directing element and a can-guidin tube receiving theblast from said element and terminating in a chamber having open endsand an open side, one open end of the chamber receiving the adjacent endof the tube, a gate pivotally suspended from its upper edge at the otheropen end of the chamber, said gate being weighted and being therebybiased normally to close said other open end of the chamber, and adownwardly inclined chute between the open ends of the chamber at saidopen side and forming the bottom of the chamber and supporting the canon movement of the can out of the tube, the gate opening insufficientlyunder the force of the blast passing a normal can in the tube to permitthe passage of such can therepast, said gate opening sufficiently topermit the passage therepast of a can so damaged as to increase the areaof the projection thereof on a plane perpendicular to the main can axis,under the impact on said gate of the damaged can when the blast isobstructed by said damaged can and said damaged can is forcibly ejectedfrom the tube, whereby a normal can enters the chute and a damaged canpasses the chute and is ejected past the gate.

6. In a machine of the character described, a reciprocating can-carryingmember having an air passage therethrough, pneumatically operated meansfor advancing and by-passing damaged cans and for loading normal cansinto the machine, said means comprising a can-guide tube adapted toreceive a blast of air thereinto from the passage, said member bein oflesser diameter than the tube to deposit a normal can loosely in thetube and to deposit a damaged can enlarged materially in the projectedcross-sectional area thereof relatively tightly in the tube, a gatehinged at its upper edge and spaced outwardly away from the end of thetube and in the path of a can moving out of the tube, and a downwardlyinclined chute having the upper end thereof constituting a fixed cansupport arranged between and bridging the gap between the gate and theadjacent end of the tube and in position to receive and to direct anormal can striking and stopped by the gate, said gate being weighted toregulate the force required to open the gate to a predetermined extentunder the influence of the air blast and the impact of the tube, wherebya can of substantially the diameter of the tube is impelled by the blastwith suflicient force to open the gate and to discharge such can pastthe upper end of the chute.

7. In a machine of the character described, an L-shaped can-forwardingtube, means including a reciprocating can-carrying member having an airpassage therethrough and of lesser diameter than the tube for deliveringa can and a blast of air to one end of the tube, a downwardly inclinedchute leading from the other end of the tube in a directionsubstantially perpendicular to the tube and having a fixed end beyondthe tube and supporting a can discharged from the tube, and a gatehinged at its upper edge and Weighted and arranged past the chute and inthe path of a can moving out of the tube.

8. In a machine of the character described, pneumatic means fordelivering a normal can to a predetermined point and for moving adamaged can past said point, said means including a tube receiving anormal can loosely and a damaged can tightly, means for directing ablast into the tube to exert a lesser pressure on a normal can than on acan so damaged as to increase the area of the projection thereof on aplane perpendicular to the main can axis, a gate suspended from itsupper edge and weighted and responsive to the greater pressure on andoperable by a damaged can, the damaged can moving out of the tube andagainst the gate to open the gate under the influence of the blast andmoving past the gate under the same influence, and a chute having oneend thereof fixedly arranged at said point to receive and to direct thenormal can.

MARK JECUSCO.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

